B0161NEC9Y (F) by K.F. Breene Page A

men. They all sat rigid in their saddles with clenched jaws and severe expressions. It was all coming to a head. “We can’t do much from here.”
    “We need a plan,” Shanti said.
    “The Hunter probably expects us to have an army of Shadow at our back.” The Captain sat straight and tall, steady as a rock. His eyes were vicious. “It would make sense for him to put his best men up front.”
    Sanders ground his teeth again. Instead of the army of Shadow, they had a team. That team was still a week behind them, at least. If the Graygual took an interest in them, though, they might never get there at all.
    The Captain’s knuckles went white on his reins. “The wise thing to do would be to wait.”
    “The wise thing to do would be to get an idea of what we’re up against.” Shanti fingered the knives on the holster around her upper thigh. “My problem is, I don’t know how to do that. There’s no sneaking in when someone with the Gift is watching for me. As soon as I’m in their range, they’ll have me.”
    “They’ll have you in more ways than one,” the Captain said, his voice getting harder. “They’ll vastly overpower you with the Gift. You might as well just offer yourself to them. It’s you the Hunter wants.”
    “And you, now.” Sanders braced his hand on the hilt of his sword. “He must know it was the two of you that made the wave of mind-death. He’ll want you both.”
    “Sir…” Daniels’ expression was one of contemplation. “The Hunter has no idea you know what’s going on. He will be expecting you to come home, and then find these foreign Inkna in our sentries’ positions. I think he’ll make allowances for your reaction, don’t you?”
    The Captain and Shanti both looked at Daniels. Neither said anything, probably thinking that through.
    “He doesn’t know Shanti is here,” Daniels continued. “He knows less than you, actually. Creating a diversion with a large release of power, and a few deaths if we can manage it, may open the way for Shanti to sneak in. And maybe one or two others. The question will be, can she get into the city? And if so, can she hide once she does?”
    “That raises a lot more questions,” Sanders said, hating the situation they’d been forced into. “If she gets in, how does she communicate with us? She’d be right under the Hunter’s nose. All he’d have to do is scoop her up.”
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    S hanti felt a whirl of nervousness as what Sanders had said sank in. But underneath that there was nothing but fire and determination. Aside from Xandre and his guards, the Hunter thought he was on top of the food chain. He thought his plan to come here and hold Cayan’s people hostage would grant him an easy capture.
    Shanti wanted to see the look on his face when she proved him wrong.
    “I can communicate with Cayan, after a fashion,” she said, glancing up to meet those burning blue eyes. “I’ll get inside, I’ll figure out what’s going on, and then I’ll find a way to relay news. We’re connected. You’ll feel me the whole time.”
    “If you can actually get in,” Sanders said. “If they catch a whiff of you, the jig is up.”
    Cayan shook his head in small jerks, his jaw clenching. He didn’t like this—she could feel the uncertainty and possessiveness raging through him—but there was no other choice. He couldn’t go—he’d be spotted immediately—and no one else, not even Rohnan, could sneak in the way she could. She was the person for this job.
    “Daniels is right,” she pushed. “The Hunter is blind right now. And he knows we work well when surprised. He’ll expect our hard reaction, but then he’ll expect to capture us. He’ll also expect us to stick together.”
    “Not to piss on the parade, but what about the Inkna in the city?” Sanders asked.
    “He’ll have the strongest out here,” Cayan said, staring off into the distance. “He needs a strong first line of defense to keep us out. Within the city, he probably only